Road closures in Najaf limited to funeral procession route for Khamenei, official says

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Road closures in Najaf will be confined to the route of the funeral procession for Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, with no citywide shutdown planned, according to Qasim al-Hakani, deputy head of the Imam Ali Combat Battalion within the Popular Mobilization Forces. Hakani said security forces would close some roads leading to the street where the ceremony will be held in order to facilitate movement of participants and allow security operations to proceed smoothly. Hakani said all security units and Popular Mobilization Forces are participating in securing the ceremony, and that coordination has been carried out with the Husseiniya delegation on visit arrangements and the entry of mourners. The ceremony at the grave of Ali al-Maktabi will be limited to scholars, he added, and Khamenei's funeral prayer will be held in Maktabi's courtyard. The bodies of Khamenei and several family members arrived at Najaf International Airport following the arrival of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and senior Iranian officials. The burials are scheduled for Wednesday at 6:00 a.m. Baghdad time in Najaf and at 4:00 p.m. in Karbala.